{"id":1389452,"date":"2026-05-03T16:48:57","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T13:48:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prm.ua\/what-s-the-difference-as-a-formula-for-unfreedom-have-ukrainians-finally-realized-the-difference\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T05:18:57","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T02:18:57","slug":"what-s-the-difference-as-a-formula-for-unfreedom-have-ukrainians-finally-realized-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/prm.ua\/en\/what-s-the-difference-as-a-formula-for-unfreedom-have-ukrainians-finally-realized-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s the Difference?\u2019: A Convenient Shortcut to Unfreedom"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source: Author’s Facebook<\/a> page<\/em><\/p>\n

“What’s the difference?” is not just a household phrase in the Soviet kitchen. It’s an entire political philosophy disguised as fatigue, pragmatism, and “normality.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

At first glance, it sounds peaceful: what difference does it make what language to speak, what church to have, what history to remember, what monuments stand in cities, who controls television, what books children read, what the streets are called, or where \u201cculture\u201d comes from? But in reality, this phrase almost always works in one direction: it does not protect freedom of choice but disarms Ukrainian subjectivity.<\/p>\n

An empire always begins not with a tank, but with the blurring of differences. First, they say Ukrainian and Russian are \u201cone and the same.” Then Ukrainian history is “common,” and the Ukrainian language is called “Russian.” Next, the Ukrainian church is \u201cpart of a great tradition.” Then, the Ukrainian state is \u201ca mistake of politicians.” And at the end, a Russian soldier comes and says, “You don\u2019t exist at all.” Therefore, the question \u201cwhat\u2019s the difference?\u201d in a colonial context is not innocent. It is a preparation for genocide\u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a difference\u201d is the psychology of a person who has been taught for a long time not to be a citizen. In the empire and the USSR, it was safer to be silent, to adapt, not to stand out, not to remember unnecessary things, to not speak the \u201cwrong\u201d language, and not to have your own opinion about the state. Power was not yours; history was dangerous; initiative was punished; and survival was the main art. Thus, a type of person was formed for whom freedom seemed like an unnecessary risk, and one’s own state was an abstraction that prevented one from \u201csimply living.\u201d<\/p>\n\t\t